Sectional garage door



Nov. 17, 1936. I M. P. GRAHAM SECTIONAL GARAGE DOOR Filed Nov. 10, 19345 ShQQtS-SIIQGI? 1 Nov. 17, 1936. M. P. GRAHAM 2,061,304

SEGTIONAL GARAGE DOOR Filed Nov. 1Q, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet -2 NOV. 17,1936. M GRAHAM SECTIONAL GARAGE DOOR File d Nov. 10, 1934 :5Sheets-Sheet 3 vwmv fi k i Patented Nov. 17, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE The Crawford Door- Company, Detroit, Micln,

a corporation of Michigan Application November 10, 1984, Serial No.752,394

I 14 Claims.

This invention relates to a sectional garage door and concerns itselfprimarily with a sheet metal construction. In the Pa t such sectionalgarage doors have usually been made of wood 6 which had to betransported from a very distant location thereby greatly increasing thecost of such doors. In addition, such wooden doors were quite heavy.

According to this invention, the sections of the door are made fromsheet metal whereby the cost thereof is greatly reduced. In addition,the weight of the door is materially reducedin the use of relativelylight sheet metal which is suitably stamped and reinforced to give theeffect of a wooden door and to provide the necessary rigidity.

This invention comprises the novel structure and combination of partshereinafter described and more particularly pointed out in the appendedclaims.

In the accompanying drawings which iilus-' trate a preferred form ofthis invention and in which similar reference numerals refer to similarfeatures in the-different views:

track for an overhead sectional door.

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of a'garage door involving thisinvention.

Figure 3 is a front elevational view of the bottom section of the doorinvolving this invention.

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken upon the lineIVIV of Figure 8.

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken upon the lineV'V of Figure 2.

Figure 6is an enlarged sectional view taken upon the line VIVI of Figure3.

Figure '7 is an enlarged sectional view of an intermediate section takenupon the line VII--VII of Fig. 2. a

Figure 8 is anenlarged fragmentary sectional view taken upon the lineVIIIVIII of Figure 2 illustrating the hinge connection between a pair ofadjacent sections of the door.

In referring to the drawings, it will be observed that there has beenillustrated a door consisting of a plurality of sections hinged togetherwhereby the door can be readily raised to an overhead position. In theillustrated embodiment the door consists of an upper section I and alower section 2 with a plurality of intermediate sections 3 and 4. v IThese sections are made from sheet metal in a manner that will presentlyappear. Each sec- Figure 1 is a fragmentary elevational view of one sideof a garage door frame illustrating the tion consists of a main'plate 5the upper and lower portions (Figs. 7 and 8) of whichare oifsetoutwardly as indicated at 5a. The upper oflset portion 5a." terminatesin an inwardly directed flange 8 that is upwardly offset at its innermargin as indicated at in. whereby a rabbet 'I is formed for a purposethat will later appear. The lower ofiset portion 5a with the exceptionof the lowermost section has an inwardly directed flange which isupwardly offset as indicated at 8:1 whereby a rabbet 9 is formed.- Upperand lower reinforcing plates l0 are welded to themain plate 5 betweenthe offset portions to and upon the inner side thereof. Thesereinforcing plates are inwardly offset as indicated at Illa, and withthe exception of the lowermost reinforcing plate of the lower doorsection, these offset portions have flanges lilb welded to the offsetportions 6a and 8a of the flanges 8 and 8.' These reinforcing platescooperate with the main plate to form an upper and lower box-likestructure upon each panel. Hinge members II and I2 (Fig. 8) are attachedto the flanges Illb for hinging two sections together. When two sectionsare thuswise hinged together, it will be observed that the rabbetededges of adjacent sections interflt. -Thus the rabbet I receives themain portion of the. flange 8 of an adjacent section while the rabbetedportion 9 of such adjacent section receives the offset flange 6a of theother section. The lowermost box-like structure of the lower hingesection of the door is left open as shown in Figure 6 and a shockabsorbing member i3 which may be in the form of wood is secured in suchbox-like structure and projects beyond the lower end thereof. When thedoor descends this shock absorbing member will strike the ground andab-' sorb the impact and prevent the metal from contact with the groundor foundation which is usually of concrete or the like. 1

In the event that a window is desired in such a garage door, spacedvertical U-shaped plates l4 may be welded to the plates 5 as shown inFigures 3 to 5, to extend between the oifset'portions 5a. Suitablewindow apertures may be cut in the main plate 5 between the verticalplates I4 as shown in Figures 5 and 7 and the lateral margins of the cutaway portions of the plate 5 may be inwardly oflset as indicated at I5in Figure 5. It will be noted that the lateralvertical plate Itcooperates with the oifset portions l5 to form lateral grooves forreceiving a transparent member Hi.

The upper and lower grooves or lodgements for the transparent member areshown in Figure '7. In referring to this flgure, it will be noted thatthe upper and lower edges of the transparent member are confined betweenthe main plate 5 and offset portions I1 formed upon the ends of theupper and lower reinforcing plates III. A U-shaped rubber member i8surrounds the edges of the transparent member.

The door is provided with lateral rollers l8 adapted to be mounted insuitable guideways upon the sides of the door frame as is well known inthe art. These guideways extend to an overhead position for supportingthe door in its open overhead position.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that a rigid, durable andrelatively light garage door has been provided to take the place of theheavier and more costly wooden doors that are now generally used. Itshould also be appreciated that the main plate and the reinforcing plateare brought into a novel cooperative relation and that the upper andlower edge portions of adjacent sections in their rabbeted relationeffectively exclude the weather between the sections.

I am aware that many changes may be made and numerous details ofconstruction may be varied through a wide range without departing from.the principles of this invention, and I, therefore, do not purposelimiting the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by theprior art.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a garage door, a sheet metal section comprising a main platemember having upper and lower ofiset portions, said ofi'set portionsterminating in flanges extending in a direction opposite to thedirection of said oflset portions,

said flanges having terminal offset portions extending in the samedirection whereby rabbets are formed upon opposite portions of saidflanges, and upper and lower reinforcing plates having oflset portionscorresponding to the oflfsets of said main plate but oppositelydirected, said reinforcing plates being welded to said main plate andhaving flanges welded to the flanges of said main plates.

2. In a garage door, a sheet metal section comprising a main platemember having upper and lower offset portions, and reinforcing plateshaving offset portions welded to said main plate and forming therewithupper .and lower boxlike structure, said main plate having terminalflanges formed with rabbets for the purpose set forth.

3. A sheet metal garage door comprising a plurality of sections, saidsections having upper and lower box-like structures formed with rabbetsand terminal flanges extending in the same direction and hinge membersconnecting said terminal flanges, the rabbets of adjacent sectionshaving an interfltting relation.

4.. In a sheet metal garage door, a plurality of hinged sections, one ofsaid sections having upper and lower offset portions forming boxlikestructures, spaced vertical U-shaped metal plates welded to said sectionbetween said boxlike structures, said section being cut away betweensaid U-shaped plates and the margins of said cut away portion beingoffset and cooperating wtih said U-shaped plates ,for receiving atransparent member.

5. In a metal garage door, a hinge section comprising a main platehaving upper and lower oil'set margins terminating in right angled,flanges formed with rabbets, upper and lower reinforcing plates weldedto said main plate between said oflset portions, said reinforcing plateshaving oflset portions cooperating with the oilset portions of said mainplate for forming boxlike structures and having terminal flanges weldedto the flanges of said main plate.

6. A sectional door comprising a plurality of metal sections, theadjacent portions of said sections comprising spaced sheet metal plates,the plates of each section terminating in laterally directed flangesextending in the same direction, said flanges being in overlappingrelation beyond the planes of said plates and hinges connecting andhinges connecting the overlapping flanges of one section with theoverlapping flanges of the adjacent section, the flanges on the platesmost remote from said hinges being horizontally offset to provideinterfltting parts.

8. In a door, a plurality of metal sections, each section comprising asheet metal panel member having upper and lower spaced portions, theadjacent spaced portions of said sections terminating in laterallydirected flanges extending in the same direction and overlapping beyondthe planes of said plates, and hinges connecting said overlappingflanges.

9. In a garage door, a sheet metal section comprising a plate havingupper and lower laterally offset portions terminating in right angledflanges vertically offset to provide rabbets, a plate,

cooperating with each laterally oflset portion to form box-likestructures, and having a right an gled flange abutting the flange uponthe first plate beyond the planes of said plates.

10. In a sectional garage door, a plurality of sheet metal sectionshaving upper and lower boxlike structures vertically oflset to provideinterfltting rabbets, said box-like structures comprising spaced plateshaving terminal right angled flanges extending in the same direction andoverlapping'beyond the planes of said plates and means hingedlyconnecting the overlapping flanges of one section with the overlappingflanges of an adjacent section.

11. In a sectional garage door, a sheet metal I section having upper andlower box-like structures, the end terminal of each box-like structurebeing vertically oiIset and having overlapping flanges extending beyondthe plane thereof, and bracing members extending between said box likestructures.

12. In a sectional garage door, a sheet metal section comprising acentral panel portion and upper and lower box-like portionssymmetrically one of said flanges being vertically offset to form arabbet in the end of the section for the purpose set forth.

13. In a sectional garage door, a pair of ad- Jacent sections, eachsection comprising spaced plates having their ends at one terminal ofthe section transversely directed in overlapping relation and extendingbeyond one side of said sections, the transversely directed ends of saidsections being in overlapping relation, and hinge means connecting saidends.

14. In a sectional garage door, a lower shee metal section comprising aplate having upper and lower ofiset portions, 9. second plate attachedto the first plate and having an offset portion co-' operating with theipper oflset portion-oi the first plate, the upper ends 01' said platesterminating in laterally directed flanges in contacting and overlappingrelation and extending beyond the side of said section, a third plateattached to the first plate and having an oflset portion cooper-

